If you are someone who spends their time playing sports and has developed pain in their arm, you might wonder, can tennis elbow cause shoulder or wrist pain?

Tennis elbow is common in athletes, but can also affect people who have never played any kind of sport. As with all injuries, tennis elbow can be very frustrating and painful.

Tennis elbow symptoms don’t stay in your elbow, but can spread to other parts of your body – such as up to your shoulder, or down to your wrist. This is because your body tries to compensate for the lack of movement in your elbow and as a result, other parts become sore.

Tennis elbow is a very common elbow injury, and may even be more common in non-players than actual tennis players.

We looked at what experts have to say about this problem, how it spreads to other parts of your arm, as well as how to fix it.

What is Tennis Elbow?

Tennis elbow is also called lateral epicondylitis and is an injury where the tendons that join the forearm muscles on the outer side of the elbow get weakened. There is often also swelling and tearing in the tendons.

It can be caused by a number of things, like overuse, which can cause tears in the tendons. It can also happen with age, or if you are playing tennis (or any other racket sport) with incorrect technique or equipment.

The symptoms usually start as a dull pain in the outer elbow, but progress until moving your arm can be painful. It can also start interfering with sleep, and you may find that your arm feels stiff and sore in the morning.

The problem is easily identified with an X-ray or MRI, and sometimes, EMGs may be done to see if there are any associated nerve problems as well.

Can Tennis Elbow Affect Other Parts Of Your Arm?

One thing to remember about any kind of injury is that it doesn’t stay in one place for very long. All parts of your body are connected to each other, so it is very possible for a problem that starts in one spot to spread to other parts of your body.

With tennis elbow, the muscles and tendons in your arm become sore from excessive use and strain. This causes burning pain along the forearm and elbow, and if left untreated, can even spread further.

The tendons that get torn or swollen are the ones that connect your wrist to your elbow and help with moving your wrist backward away from your palm.

Therefore, the pain from tennis elbow can spread downwards towards the wrist, particularly if you continue with the activity that caused the injury in the first place. As a result, your grip may become weak, and it can become difficult for you to hold things, or twist your arms or fingers.

While pain spreading down is understandable, since the forearm muscles do extend down to the wrist, that is not all. The pain from tennis elbow can also spread upwards towards your shoulders.

This is more of a side effect, rather than an extension of the condition. Because of the pain and swelling in the elbow, your movements become limited. This means that you are unable to move your elbow, and as such, compensate by using the rest of your arm – particularly your shoulders.

This is what causes the shoulder pain.

How to Treat and Prevent Tennis Elbow

If you have been diagnosed with the problem, it is important to get it treated as soon as possible. If left untreated, tennis elbow will only get worse and, as mentioned, will start spreading as well.

Treatment includes a number of things. For one thing, you have to quit the activity that caused the condition and give your arm a rest. Even if that means putting a break on your tennis, though again, most sufferers of tennis elbow are not tennis players.

You should also use ice packs to reduce the inflammation, and incorporate stretching exercises into your routine to strengthen your muscles. Anti-inflammatory medicines can also be administered to minimize the inflammation and reduce pain.

In some rare occasions, if the injury is particularly bad, you might need to use a more intense approach. For example, corticosteroid injections can help with the pain, or you may need to use a brace to keep the area still. In a worst-case scenario, you may even need surgery to repair the tendon. This is rare, though, and the problem is usually cared for with physiotherapy and medicine.

To prevent tennis elbow, you should keep your arms flexible and strong and avoid movements that are repetitive. Make sure to warm up before you exercise or play any sports that require repetitive movements, especially if you need to put in a lot of force for them.

For players of racket sports, you should make sure that your equipment is right for you, and that your technique is appropriate and safe to use.

Tennis elbow can be extremely painful, and while it is a common problem in many people, it is definitely not something that’s easy to live with. The pain in your elbow can interfere with your daily tasks, particularly if it starts spreading through the rest of your arm as well. If you’re forced to rest your arm, you may have to put some daily tasks on hold until you get better.